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Wang Yi
Wintec
University of Waikato
Shandong University of Technology
29-10-2016 1
Autonomy-oriented reflective practice: From
teachers to learners
Outline
2
Motivation for this study
Literature review & research questions
Research setting, participants & methods
Findings
Discussion and reflections
The spark
3
Therefore the sage says：
我 无 为, 而 民 自 化; 我 好 静, 而 民 自 正;
我 无 事, 而 民 自 富; 我 无 欲, 而 民 自 朴。
I do nothing, and the people, by themselves, evolve;
I say nothing, and the people, by themselves, go right;
I disturb nothing, and the people, by themselves, prosper;
I desire nothing, and the people, by themselves, remain simple and pure.
Tao Tzu (6th Century BC)
A healthy society
(co-)governed
by its people
Chinese National Curriculum Reform
4
The New Curriculum Standards for secondary English (Years 6-9) aims to stimulate students’ interest for
English learning, to help them build up confidence as well as develop good study skills and effective learning
strategies, and to enhance autonomous learning ability and collaborative awareness, […] so as to lay a good
foundation for their lifelong learning and personal development. (China MoE, 2001)
5
(King, 1993)
Literature framework
6
LA (Holec, 1981; Benson, 2001, 2011)
• What
• Why
• How
TC (Borg, 2003, 2006)
• Know
• Believe
• Think
RP (Farrell, 2007)
• Reflection-in-action
• Reflection-on-action
• Reflection-for-action
TP
LA: what
“the ability to take charge of one’s own learning” (Holec, 1981, p. 3)
7
LA
TC RP
(Reinders, 2010, p. 51)
LA: what
8
“the ability to take charge of one’s own learning” (Holec, 1981, p. 3)
“a capacity for detachment, critical reflection, decision making
and independent action” (Little, 1991, p. 4)
“the right to be free to exercise his or her own choices” (Crabbe, 1993, p. 443)
“learners’ ability and willingness to make choices independently” (Littlewood, 1996, p. 427)
“the capacity to take control of one’s own learning” (Benson, 2001, p. 47; 2011, p. 58)
• ability
• desire
• freedom
• learning management
• cognitive process
• learning content
(Huang and Benson, 2013)
Political
Psychological
Technical
(Benson, 1997)
LA
TC RP
Dimensions of LA
9
Sociocultural
Political-critical
Psychological
Technical
Technical
Psychological
Political
I: Vygotskyan approaches
II: Community of practice
(Oxford, 2003)
(Benson, 1997)
LA: Why
10
LA has been widely recognised as a universally legitimate and desirable educational goal,
for (Benson, 2011; Little, 1991)
language learning
learning in general
personal development
a healthy democratic society
LA
TC RP
LA: How - Control shift
11
The key factor is “the opportunity for students to make decisions regarding their learning within a collaborative
and supportive environment” (Benson, 2001, p. 151).
Autonomous learning demands “the teacher’s power be lessened and the learner’s power concomitantly increased”
(Voller, 1997, p. 106).
The construction of autonomy is achieved through “the deliberate surrendering of certain prerogatives by the
teacher accompanied by the concomitant acceptance of responsibility by the learner or learners” (Candy, 1991, p. 9).
LA
TC RP
Tips/pitfalls in the control transition
12
Role re-allocation
Appropriate support
Spontaneous actions
LA
TC RP
Why TC on LA?
13
The effect of any new curriculum initiative depends largely on teachers’ understanding of the
key notions concerned in the innovations. (Wedell, 2009)
While LA has been widely researched from various aspects, there remains “a significant gap” in
exploring language teachers’ understanding of the concept of LA. (Borg & Al-Busaidi, 2012a, p. 3)
LA
TC RP
Connecting TC & RP
14
“the unobservable cognitive dimension of teaching
– what teachers know, believe, and think” (Borg, 2003, p. 81).
Teacher cognition
(thinking)
thoughts
beliefs
knowledges
Reflective practice (Farrell, 2007)
Reflection
for action
in action
on action
Teacher practice
(doing)
LA
TC RP
Research questions
15
1. In what ways was learner/teacher control supported in the context?
2. What reflections did the teachers demonstrate regarding their
autonomy-oriented practice?
Zia:
A Chinese
private
secondary
school
Research setting, participants & methods
16
Principal
• Interview
Executive Director
• Interviews
• Innovation project documents
T1 – T9
• Observations
• Post-lesson discussions
• Interviews
Zia
A school LA innovation project
17
self-study
group discussion
group presentation
peer feedback
peer evaluation
internalisation
A suggested ACE Model
Autonomous
Collaborative
Efficient
Teacher support for the LA innovation
18
Teacher training workshops (experiential learning & groupwork)
Group-based classroom management (Performance Points)
Team lesson planning (Learning Guide)
Peer observation & evaluation (Evaluation Standards)
Collective discussions & peer feedback giving (Reflective report)
Teacher support for
the LA innovation
Evidence for learner control
19
LA
-ori
ente
d pr
acti
ces
pre-lesson presentation
group-based collaborative learning
student-led peer teaching
reported individual practices
Self-study
Group work
Presentation
Peer feedback
Peer evaluation
Peer teaching
Choices and decision making
Degree of learner control varied significantly …
20
Pat
tern
4
Reciting a text from textbook
Pat
tern
3
Performing a textbook-based dialogue
Pat
tern
2
Reciting a poem chosen by students but approved by teacher
Pat
tern
1
Delivering a short speech of students’ choice
Training ss to recite in T-favoured pronunciation & intonation
Presenters re-writing textbook dialogues
Ss nominating presenters and negotiating on text selection;
Presenter telling about the text in his own words;
Peer-evaluating the recitation
Team-presenting;
Presenter teaching vocabulary;
Ask-&-answer about the presentation
Teacher cognition
thoughts
beliefs
knowledges
21
LA
TC RP TC about LA
What did the teachers know
about the what, why, and how
about LA?
Did they believe in their
students’ capacity for LA?
What did they think what they
had done?
TC about LA
22
Autonomy is an inner strength, which keeps people
calm and confident in all situations; it is the capacity
to act independently and analyse and solve problems
by oneself, with or without external help. (T2.I)
As long as I let students go and provide appropriate
support, students do well, and often they perform much
beyond much my expectations. (T2.I)
It certainly takes time to let students to figure
out things by themselves, but it’s beneficial in
the long run. (T2.L1.PLD)
“But what on earth is autonomous learning?
Having observed these many lessons, it seemed
that the so-called autonomous learning was just
students studying in silence. (T1.I)
I know I should give students more opportunities
for them to inquire by themselves, but I’m
always concerned that they can’t understand
fully. (T5.I)
Presentation takes a lot of time and students
make mistakes, but there’s just too much to
cover in a lesson, so often I have to cut that short
or out to move on. (T1.L1.PLD)
Teacher support & Teacher professional autonomy
23
Teacher training workshops (experiential learning & groupwork)
Group-based classroom management (Performance Points)
Team lesson planning (Learning Guide)
Peer observation & evaluation (Evaluation Standards)
Collective discussions & peer feedback giving (Reflective report)
• Collaborative inquiry about the
LA innovation;
• Flexible adoption of the
suggested model;
• Not concerning much about
the evaluation results;
• Proactive peer-observation and
seeking critical feedback.
• Compulsory participation of
all workshops and required
number of observations;
• Unnecessary scrutiny of T
lesson plan/LG;
• Evaluative element contained
in the given model;
• Compulsory all-on-all
observations and feedback
giving;
• Genuine systematic reflection
not much in evidence.
Revisit LA Guidelines/principles in literature
Nunan (1997) Benson (2003)
24
learner involvement
learner reflection
appropriate target
language use
be actively involved in students’
learning
provide options and resources
offer choices and decision-making
opportunities
support learners
encourage reflection
Little (1999, 2001, 2007)
• awareness
• involvement
• intervention
• creation
• transcendence
LA
TC RP
Examine TP in reference to LA Guidelines/principles
in literature
25
Little (1999, 2001, 2007)
learner involvement (+)
learner reflection ( - )
appropriate target language use ( - )
self-study
group discussion
group presentation
peer feedback
peer evaluation
internalisation
Teacher support & Teacher professional autonomy
26
Teacher training workshops (experiential learning & groupwork)
Group-based classroom management (Performance Points)
Team lesson planning (Learning Guide)
Peer observation & evaluation (Evaluation Standards)
Collective discussions & peer feedback giving (Reflective report)
• Collaborative inquiry about the
LA innovation;
• Flexible adoption of the
suggested model;
• Not concerning much about
the evaluation results;
• Proactive peer-observation and
seeking critical feedback.
• Compulsory participation of
all workshops and required
number of observations;
• Unnecessary scrutiny of T
lesson plan/LG;
• Evaluative element contained
in the given model;
• Compulsory all-on-all
observations and feedback
giving;
• Genuine systematic reflection
not much in evidence.
Rethink about LA Strategies/techniques in literature
27
Benson (1997)
- authentic interaction with the target language and its users
- collaborative group work and collective decision making
- participation in open-ended learning tasks
- learning about the target language and its social contexts of use
- exploration of societal and personal learning goals
- criticism of learning tasks and materials
- self-production of tasks and materials
- control over the management of learning
- control over the content of learning
- control over resources
- discussion and criticism of target language norms
LA
TC RP
28
Benson (2003)
- Encouraging student preparation.
- Drawing on out-of-class experience.
- Using ‘authentic’ materials and ‘real’ language.
- Independent inquiry.
- Involve students in task design.
- Encouraging student-student interaction.
- Peer teaching.
- Encouraging divergent student outcomes.
- Self- and peer-assessment.
- Encourage reflection.
LA
TC RP
29
Nunan (2003)
- Step 1: Make instruction goals clear to learners
- Step 2: Allow learners to create their own goals
- Step 3: Encourage learners to use their second language outside the classroom
- Step 4: Raise awareness of learning processes
- Step 5: Help learners identify their own preferred styles and strategies
- Step 6: Encourage learner choice
- Step 7: Allow learners to generate their own tasks
- Step 8: Encourage learners to become teachers
- Step 9: Encourage learners to become researchers
LA
TC RP
30
Little (2006)
- use the target language as the preferred medium of classroom communication and require the
same of her learners;
- involve her learners in a non-stop quest for good learning activities, which are shared, discussed,
analysed and evaluated with the whole class – in the target language, to begin with in very simple terms;
- help her learners to set their own learning targets and choose their own learning activities,
subjecting them to discussion, analysis and evaluation – again, in the target language;
- require her learners to identify individual goals but pursue them through collaborative work in
small groups;
- require her learners to keep a written record of their learning – plans of lessons and projects,
lists of useful vocabulary, whatever texts they themselves produce;
- engage her learners in regular evaluation of their progress as individual learners and as a class –
in the target language.
LA
TC RP
A tentative mapping
31
Teachers giving control to learners
• e.g., allowing learner choice or divergent student outcomes
Learners preparing to take control
• e.g., raise awareness of learning processes, helping learners identify their own preferred styles and strategies
Learners taking control
• e.g., involving students in task design, learners becoming teachers or researchers
Learners reflecting on control-taking
• e.g., criticism of learning tasks and materials, criticism of target language norms, and reflection
LA
TC RP
A step further to bring everything together
32
Teachers giving control to students
• Awareness, knowledge & beliefs
Learners preparing to take control
• Awareness, willingness & metacognitive knowledge of LA
Learners taking control
• Actions and interactions using target/authentic language
Learners reflecting on control-taking
• Reflection
Teachers reflecting on control-giving
• Reflection
for action
in action
on action
for action
in action
on action
LA
TC RP
References
33
Benson, P. (2001). Teaching and researching autonomy in language learning. London: Longman.
Benson, P. (2011). Teaching and Researching Autonomy (2ed.). London, England: Pearson.
Borg, S. (2003). Teacher cognition in language teaching: A review of research on what language teachers think, know, believe, and do. Language Teaching, 36(02), 81-109.
doi:10.1017/S0261444803001903
Borg, S. (2006). Teacher cognition and language education: research and practice. London, England: Continuum.
Borg, S., & Al-Busaidi, S. (2012). Teachers' beliefs and practices regarding learner autonomy. ELT Journal, 66(3), 283-292. 10.1093/elt/ccr065
China MoE (2001b). 英语课程标准(实验稿) [English Curriculum Standards (experimental)]. Beijing, China: Beijing Normal University Press.
Crabbe, D. (1993). Fostering autonomy from within the classroom: The teacher's responsibility. System, 21(4), 443-452.
Farrell, T. S. C. (2007). Reflective language teaching: From research to practice. London, England: Continuum Press.
Holec, H. (1981). Autonomy and foreign language learning. Oxford, England: Pergamon.
Huang, J., & Benson, P. (2013). Autonomy agency and identity in foreign and second language education. Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics, 36(1), 7-28. doi:10.1515/cjal-
2013-0002
Little, D. (1991). Learner autonomy: Definitions, issues and problems. Dublin, Ireland: Authentik.
Little, D. (2007). Language learner autonomy: Some fundamental considerations revisited. Innovation in language learning and teaching, 1(1), 14-29.
Littlewood, W. (1996). "Autonomy": An anatomy and a framework. System, 24(4), 427-435.
Nunan, D. (1997). Designing and adapting materials to encourage learner autonomy. In P. Benson & P. Voller (Eds.), Autonomy and independence in language learning (pp. 192-203). London, England.: Longman.
Nunan, D. (Ed.). (2003). Practical English language teaching. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Oxford, R. L. (2003). Toward a more systematic model of L2 learner autonomy. In D. Palfreyman & R. C. Smith (Eds.), Learner autonomy across cultures: Language education
perspectives (pp. 75-91). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Reinders, H. (2010). Towards a classroom pedagogy for learner autonomy: A framework of independent language learning skills. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 35(5),
40-55. doi:10.14221/ajte.2010v35n5.4
Wedell, M. (2009). Planning educational change: Putting people and their contexts first. London, England: Continuum.
